Big News!

I’m Writing a Book!

I’m thrilled to share that I’m currently writing a book with the help of an incredibly talented author.

The title is still in the works (I promise to share it when the time comes!), but I couldn’t wait any longer to share the exciting news.

Since the so-called “reopening” of Rhonda and Donnie’s murder case in 2016—once closed and solved for nearly four decades—it has attracted more attention for its legal drama and headline-grabbing twists than for any real pursuit of justice—justice that was already achieved long ago. To me, it feels like a confusing maze of deception and confusion. Amid the media circus and lack of meaningful investigative reporting, the two people who truly matter—Rhonda and Donnie—have been completely forgotten.

That’s why I’m writing this book.

This won’t be just a chronological retelling—it is going to be a tribute to the lives of Rhonda and Donnie and a careful examination of how the original investigation, in my view, reached the correct conclusion. That conclusion was later called into question by an active-duty police officer who took it upon himself to begin re-investigating a closed murder case. Identified as XCV in my blog (see acronyms below), this officer eventually left the Simi Valley Police Department—but not before, in my opinion, launching a personal campaign of revenge against his former superior (identified as OI in my blog). As the readers of my blog know, XCV played a minor role in helping to secure a pardon for RDK, who, in my opinion, was rightfully convicted.

Above all, this book is about remembrance, accountability, and giving voice to two lives stolen far too soon.

Alicia Doyle is a woman of many talents—an award-winning journalist, acclaimed author, and boxing champion. You can learn more about her at aliciadoyle.com. I’m incredibly excited that she’s taking on the task of writing the story of Rhonda and Donnie. What makes this even more meaningful is that Alicia isn’t just lending her expertise—she’s truly enjoying the process. Knowing that someone so accomplished is both invested in and passionate about telling this story means the world to me.

Alicia’s most recent book, The Oath, tells the story of Flo Trapani, a former police officer who recounts her experiences of harassment as one of the first female officers in the Simi Valley Police Department. Notably, this is the same department that not only investigated the 1978 murders of Rhonda and Donnie but also reopened and reinvestigated the case in 2016. Here is an excerpt from the description of the book: …soon after she started the job, she learned she wasn’t welcome in this male-dominated profession. Her fellow officers and superiors conspired to remove her from their ranks—to the extent that she feared her life was in jeopardy—which forced her to take an early retirement. Now, nearly four decades later, Flo is ready to share this story of deceit, betrayal and heartache—and the acceptance and forgiveness that helped her move on.

Flo’s story contains unsettling parallels to the investigation into Rhonda and Donnie’s murders, even though her story took place years later. Notably, RDK, XCV, and OI all appear in her book—albeit under alias names. Ironically, her ex-husband is XCV, and her only ally within the police department at the time was OI. In The Oath, XCV is identified as Jack Smith, RDK is revealed to be Ray Jones, and OI is lieutenant. We may retain these names in the book, though final decisions are still pending, as the project remains in its early stages.

I’ve read The Oath and highly recommend it. The writing is excellent, and the subtle links to Rhonda and Donnie’s story are truly captivating. I’m confident the story will come full circle once my book is complete.

~Click here to view Acronyms List~

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THE FORSAKEN Update

Getting Closer to the Truth

The release of The Forsaken is drawing nearer, and although we initially hoped for a Fall launch, we’re now looking ahead to an early 2026 release. Recent updates and behind-the-scenes happenings have moved the timeline, but they’ve also brought new energy and community excitement.

Pre-Launch Book Gatherings

If you’ve visited our Facebook group (The Forsaken: Justice For Rhonda and Donnie), you know our incredible team member Flo Trapani, who I lovingly call our Public Relations Person. She shares updates so faithfully, pouring her heart into keeping this story alive through videos that connect with so many. Flo has gone even further—opening her home in Simi Valley to host Pre-Launch Book gatherings where people come to hear Rhonda and Donnie’s story and ask real, heartfelt questions. The most recent gathering on September 20^th was very meaningful to me. Though I could only join via video, having Alicia Doyle, our author, there, along with a local newspaper reporter from The Acorn and so many caring people, felt like a step toward healing.

The truest joy, however, came from having the original investigator (OI) there, answering questions and shining a light on the truth and details of the original investigation from 1978. Having him by our side and part of our team fills me with hope.

A Wake-Up Call for Simi Valley

Most surprising to me is these gatherings have shown just how much remains unknown about Rhonda and Donnie’s 1978 murder, even among long-time Simi Valley residents—some knew Rhonda or our family, yet there are still surprising gaps in public understanding.

This increased visibility from Facebook, Book Clubs, and word of mouth has led people to step forward with new information. As of this writing, we have two pending interviews: one about the renewed 2016 investigation, and another with someone referred to in my blog as XCV (see acronyms below). Despite multiple attempts—via mail, email, and Facebook messenger—to contact RDK, we’ve only received a response from his page administrator, who said they’d pass on our request but couldn’t guarantee a reply. To date, RDK himself has never responded.

Once these interviews are complete (unless more sources emerge), we’ll be far closer to submitting the manuscript for publication. Photography lovers will appreciate what’s inside—plenty of pictures, including actual documents, to leave no doubt about the details. I’m also thrilled to announce that I’ll soon be opening a dedicated website for The Forsaken, giving you another place to access more information as we move toward the release.

The Book’s Heart: The Truth

Alicia and I are committed to sharing the full story, so every reader can understand the truth and decide what it means to them. I know true crime often stirs strong feelings, but for me, this isn’t about debate or controversy—it’s about honoring Rhonda and Donnie as the beautiful, loving people they were. This book is my way of opening a window into who they were, so their story lives on with all who read it.

Remembering Rhonda and Donnie

The most important thing to my family and me is that people get to know Rhonda and Donnie and see how precious they were. Since RDK’s release in 2017 not one media outlet has asked him to share memories of Rhonda and Donnie. He has said he loved them but he has never elaborated. He said he never got to properly mourn them, but has never expressed his loss. We gave him that opportunity when we reached out for an interview but he chose not to respond. He didn’t reject it, he just didn’t even respond. Make of that what you will.

For me, this journey has been about love, loss, and the enduring hope that telling their story will finally bring some peace. I’m pouring everything I have into making sure Rhonda and Donnie are never forgotten — or forsaken.

~Click here to view Acronyms List~

Press and Media

The Forsaken has just been featured in the media — and it hasn’t even been published yet! This moment marks an exciting milestone for our team.

On September 20, 2025, team member Flo Trapani hosted what she called a “pre-launch book gathering” for The Forsaken at her home in Simi Valley. Flo has become, in every sense, our unofficial public relations director. Deeply involved in the community, she talks about The Forsaken everywhere she goes — and people are truly intrigued. She promotes this book even more passionately than her own, The Oath. Flo’s energy, commitment, and heart make her a vital part of our team, and I’m so grateful for her.

Our author, Alicia Doyle, also joined the gathering. Her incredible writing brings all my thoughts and feelings to life, along with Rhonda and Donnie themselves, so readers truly feel like they know them. She is thorough and careful—diligently reviewing endless documents and spending hours conducting interviews—which turns into storytelling that really honors and humanizes the heart of the story. I’m genuinely amazed by her talent and dedication.

Without Alicia’s amazing gift and endless commitment, this book wouldn’t have been possible. I am so thankful God brought her into my life and this journey.

Along with all her hard work, Alicia also reached out to The Simi Valley Acorn. Reporter Michele Willer-Allred came to the event to interview and take photos, then wrote a thoughtful and powerful article about the book and its story.

Unfortunately, I was unable to make the trip to Simi Valley, so I appeared by Zoom. I was able to interact and answer questions from the people who attended the gathering and was also interviewed by Michele from The Acorn.

Adding to the excitement, retired Simi Valley Police Detective Bob Klamser also attended. Many of you know him from my blog as “OI.” Bob was the original investigator into Rhonda and Donnie’s murders in 1978, and his participation in The Forsaken project means the world to me. He has been my primary source of insight since 2017, and my late mother greatly respected him — she always praised his dedication and compassion. Without Bob’s guidance, I don’t know how I would have endured the years spent searching for truth and closure.

Having Bob officially join the Forsaken team also fulfills a long-standing goal of mine: to help restore his reputation after years of unfair criticism. Since the 1990s, XCV has worked hard to tarnish Bob’s good name, and following RDK’s release in 2017, much of the media unfairly labeled the original 1978 investigation as flawed. In reality, Bob was one of several investigators — and their findings were correct from the start. Modern DNA analysis hasn’t contradicted the original case; instead, it has only confirmed what the 1978 team already knew.

You can read The Simi Valley Acorn article here:
https://www.simivalleyacorn.com/articles/a-murder-a-pardon-and-a-city-still-searching-for-answers/

As of today, October 19, 2025, we are projecting a January 2026 release for The Forsaken. Alicia has just completed her final interview — with the retired Simi Valley Chief of Police who reopened Rhonda and Donnie’s case. He spoke candidly and respectfully, offering an open and honest perspective. His willingness to participate was gracious, especially since both XCV and RDK never responded to her interview requests.

It’s important to note that these interviews were never meant to catch anyone in untruths. Our mission with The Forsaken is simply to present both sides and allow readers to draw their own conclusions. My only goal has always been to tell the truth. The reinvestigation of Rhonda and Donnie’s case, in my opinion, was incomplete — largely because essential physical evidence, like the bloody towel found in RDK’s apartment, was destroyed decades ago and could not be retested. Many of the recovered reports were partial, and a significant portion of the files came from XCV, who obtained them from RDK’s parents’ lawyer in 1979. That source alone makes the record inherently biased.

Now that Alicia’s interviews are finished, she can complete the final chapter. Next steps include proofreading the manuscript, organizing the many photographs, and having my attorney conduct a legal review. Once the publisher receives everything, the production timeline is expected to take four to six weeks — with the holiday season adding a slight delay. That’s why we’ve set our sights on a January 2026 publication date.

This project has always been about more than a book — it’s about truth, remembrance, and justice. I’m beyond grateful that soon, readers will finally come to know Rhonda and Donnie as real people — not just victims — and understand the depth of loss and love that has shaped every step of this journey.

~Click here to view Acronyms List~

The Journey to Truth, Healing, and The Forsaken

Some of you may wonder why I’m telling this story now, after all these years. The truth is, losing Rhonda and Donnie has lived inside me for nearly fifty years, yet some days it still feels like it happened just weeks ago. I can still see their faces and their smiles so clearly. But their voices…those are harder.

I remember Rhonda’s laugh, but not Donnie’s. I remember the sound of my parents’ and my brothers’ voices, but not hers. Not his. And that kind of forgetting hurts in a way that’s hard to explain. It’s the small things that cut the deepest.

I never set out to write their story. My family had found a way to live with the loss. We had accepted what happened as best we could, and I never felt the need to dig deeper. I knew enough to survive it, and that was all I ever asked of myself.

But then everything changed. The man convicted of murdering my sister and nephew — sentenced to two life terms without parole, plus special circumstances — was suddenly being pardoned after thirty-nine years. They said two old slides found in a lab proved he wasn’t the killer. They said someone else must have done it. And that’s when the confusion and the questions began.

What troubled me most was the amount of evidence that convicted him in 1980. It wasn’t just two pieces of fabric, but nearly 300 pieces of evidence, plus his testimony. This proof was destroyed in the late 1980s, not because of a bad cop or conspiracies of being framed and evidence planted, but by a court order. It was completely within the law. The case was closed, the convicted man sent to prison for two life sentences, and all appeals had been denied. They do not do this with homicide cases today, but that’s of little comfort with what unfolded nearly forty years later.

And then came something I never expected: reading interviews where the convicted man and the man the media dubbed his “hero” told cruel, baseless lies about Rhonda—lies meant to demean her character and shift blame onto a young mother who could no longer defend herself, coming from the man who claims to have loved her, loved Donnie. The media repeated their words because that’s what interviews do, but the lies themselves came from those two men. Seeing them twist her memory like that was devastating. It was one of the most painful parts of this entire journey.

I was furious. I wrote letters. I gave interviews. I started a blog. I tried everything I could to bring the truth back into the light. Slowly, people began to listen. And then, out of nowhere, the opportunity to write a book appeared. I knew I couldn’t do it alone, so I looked for help—and God led me straight to an extraordinary woman. A woman He handpicked for me, for Rhonda, for Donnie, and for The Forsaken: Alicia Doyle. She had already authored two extraordinary books, Fighting Chance and The Oath. She was exactly who this story needed, and working with her has been one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.

During this process, I had to learn things I never wanted to know. I had to face details I had avoided for decades. I had to speak out loud about the brutality of what happened to Rhonda and Donnie. I saw photos I had never seen. I said words I never imagined I could say.

And instead of breaking me, something unexpected happened — I felt a release. A kind of healing I didn’t know I needed.

It wasn’t easy. It was emotional, painful, and overwhelming at times. But I discovered something about myself: when I needed to protect the people I love, I stepped out of my shell. I’ve always been an introvert, a quiet observer, someone who avoids the spotlight. But when it came to defending Rhonda and Donnie, I found a strength I didn’t know I had. My mother — outspoken, fearless, and full of fire — would be proud. She probably always knew it was in me.

If you choose to read The Forsaken, I hope you’ll remember the journey behind it. I don’t know if anyone ever fully heals from this kind of loss, but I do believe we can learn to carry it differently. If at times I sound detached or matter‑of‑fact, please know it’s not because I don’t feel. I feel everything. I’ve just learned how to step outside myself when I need to, so I can tell their story with clarity and truth.

How do I feel now? I feel honored. I feel blessed. I feel guided. I believe God placed this path in front of me so I could finally speak the truth out loud — for Rhonda, for Donnie, and for anyone who has ever been silenced.

As I look back on this journey — the grief, the searching, the anger, the revelations, and the unexpected healing — I see now that every step had a purpose. I didn’t choose this path; it unfolded beneath my feet, one painful truth at a time, until I understood that telling Rhonda and Donnie’s story wasn’t just something I could do, but something I was meant to do. This book became more than a project. It became a calling, a responsibility, and ultimately, a source of strength I never knew I had. And with that understanding came the deepest lesson of all: God doesn’t always spare us from pain, but He strengthens us to confront it — and sometimes healing begins the moment we realize that courage is simply love refusing to stay quiet.

The wait is nearly over. The Forsaken is coming soon, and the truth at the heart of this story is finally ready to be told. Subscribe for updates, or return here anytime to follow the countdown.